Quick And Easy Ways To Stay On Top Of Your Hot Tub Maintenance

To relax and unwind in your own hot tub by yourself or with friends and family is one of the greatest ways to spend some time at the end of the day. However, to keep your tub clean, safe and functioning properly for many years you will need to keep on top on the regular hot tub maintenance that is required.

Daily Things You Have To Do

On a daily basis there are a few things that need to be checked and looked after. Checking that the pH and chlorine (or bromine) levels are in the safe range is important. This only takes a minute or two with a small test kit. If the pH and chlorine levels are out of range then it is just a simple matter of adding a bit more of pH raiser or chlorine to bring them into range depending on what is needed. Keeping these two levels in the safe range will keep the water safe to be used by you and your guests.

Also, each day, wipe the tub at the waterline to keep the tub from getting a ring around it. Clean any dirt off of the tub and cover. And, cleaning around the area that you get in and out of the hot tub will keep dirt from being tracked into it.

Weekly Tasks

Every week, there are a few tasks that need to be done for your hot tub maintenance. Depending on the area that you live and the type of water you have will make a difference in what you need to do. In areas with soft water, you will probably have to add only a bit of non-chlorine hot tub shock or some other type of clearing chemical. This is for killing organic contaminants and clearing the water to look crystal clear. In other areas you may need to add a stain and scale treatment to prevent and eliminate staining and scaling from forming and to help clarify cloudy water.

Topping up your tub with more water should be done once a week, too. This will refill what has evaporated and what has been spilled from the hot tub.

Monthly And Yearly Tasks

About every two to three weeks you will need to clean your filter. At least once a month take off the cover to the pump unit and check to see if everything looks fine and dry. The water from the tub should be drained and refilled every three or four months, depending on usage. Clean your hot tub cover with a proper vinyl cleaner once a month.

By doing each of these hot tub maintenance tasks, you will keep the water safe to use and extend the life of your tub for many years of enjoyment.

Interested in learning more about hot tubs and hot tub covers? Visit http://www.greathottubstoday.com/ an instructive website that provides hot tub advice, tips and resources including information on hot tub chemicals, filters and equipment.

The Beauty of a Bathroom Suite

While keeping in mind functionality, you'll want your bathroom suite comprised of things that help show a little of your own personality. Everything is important from toilet selection to decorating selection.

If you want to be able to share a long hot bubble bath with someone special, you'll want to find a tub that provides the room for an extra body. If you like to have several body wash and hair care product options, you may want to consider a shower with several shelves for storage. Perhaps an extra large ledge around the top of the tub would be in order for candle light or some greenery. Consider placing a basket near the bathtub to fill with reading materials.

If you like to have your lotions and make-up on display, you may want to pick an exceptionally larger counter area to surround your sink. The vanity should give you plenty of area for you to accomplish your grooming needs. If there are several people shA1Caring one bathroom you may want to consider double sinks with that extra counter space so there's room for two or more people to brush teeth, apply make-up, or shave within a limited amount of time. This could prove to help reduce the number of fights over who gets what amount of time when preparing for a day or evening outing.

Consider adding extra accessories to the bathroom suite for convenience. Towel racks, laundry baskets, and containers for odds-and-ends can all provide a sense of organization in the room. These items can be found for cheap but make all the difference in the feel of your room.

Coordinating accessories and decorations with the trim work of your bathroom essentials can make a visually appealing bathroom suite. You could choose to accent classic silver faucets with Victorian style dcor or Modern black accents. Versatility in themes is a key factor to keep in mind when picking out your essentials so that as decorating tastes change, you can easily transform your bathroom suite to match. If there's a chance that you may sell your home in the future, this versatility helps with marketability for potential buyers.

There are several great options on the web to search for ideas when you're planning your new construction or remodel. Home improvement websites have a wide variety of items you can search while you are trying to come up with your vision. There are multiple websites dedicated to decorating that can prove useful as well. Build or remodel your bathroom suite around your needs, present and future. Find your escape from the world into a hideaway of peace and rejuvenation.

We invite you to take a look at a wide variety of bathroom suite ideas and designs at: jtspas.com

Planting Bulbs - Part 3 - Watering, Removing Foliage

With fall on the way, it is time to consider planting bulb flowers that we want for spring blooming. Bulbs are one of the best flower investments for the cost, properly cared for they will provide spring color in your garden for years.

Watering Bulbs

It is important that after planting any spring flowering bulb that the beds be watered. Watering aids in settling the soil and provides the moisture necessary to commence root growth. Bulbs that are planted in the fall must commence to root before the cold weather sets in. Over watering at this time or any time can create bulb rot avoid over watering. Drip irrigation works very well with all bulb plantings.

If your soil is dry, you should commence watering spring and summer plants as soon as the first flower buds appear on the plant. Do not just water the surface! The larger plant bulbs were planted 6 to 8 inches deep and water needs to permeate the soil to below that depth in order to reach the new root growth.

Continuous watering is needed throughout the growth of the plant from bud to bloom and early foliage, the plant needs approximately 1 inch of water per week (rainfall or supplemental watering). Try to keep water away from the blooms. If you are providin929g supplemental watering, use a drip irrigation or a soaker hose aiming the water at the base of the plant.

Shallow planted bulbs such as alliums will quickly rot if over-watered in the summer heat.

Removing Foliage

Spring flowers create a beautiful garden, with a wide variety of colors, shapes, and heights that is, until the blooms die, and you are left with a very unappealing quantity of green foliage. Although this could be unappealing, the foliage should not be cut or mowed until it turns a shade of yellow and dies naturally.

Little aesthetic problems are caused with the smaller bulbs such as snowdrops and squill as the foliage on these plants dies quite rapidly. Tulips and daffodils have much larger bulbs and much hardier and larger stocks of foliage. These plants may take several weeks to die naturally. Cutting the foliage prematurely can cause damage to the bulb and prevent it from growing next year. After flowering, the plant needs the green leaves to manufacture food (photosynthesis) that is then stored in the bulb for next years growth. Prematurely cutting the foliage means that the plant can no longer manufacture nutrients.

If the foliage is a visual concern, you can divert attention from the foliage by planting bulbs in between colorful annual plants.

For additional information on Planting Bulbs
Part 1 Soil Preparation, Fertilizing;
Part 2 Planting Location, Planting Depth;
Part 4 Staking, Mulching, Storing;

For additional information on gardening and landscaping or other home renovation projects, visit Renovation Headquarters.

Give Your Bathroom the Spa Treatment

Think back to the last time you treated yourself to a sp2238a day. It's not just about the facial or the massage; depending on the facility, your experience began when you were greeted at the door and offered a glass of wine or other refreshment. Another person handed you a cushy, luxurious robe and escorted you to a private room where you soaked in a hot whirlpool tub until you indulged in your spa treatment. You left on wobbly legs, feeling complete, and totally relaxed; as though daily life as you know it had been put on pause. If only you could take this feeling with you.

More and more this spa-like experience is being recreated in decorating styles as home owners are taking their mild mannered bathrooms and giving them the spa treatment. Here are some of the more popular decorating techniques for transforming your bathroom, where your only restriction is your budget.

It's all about the tub. For many people, this is their one escape from the demands of the day and a busy family life. A soak in a hot scented tub can do wonders to rejuvenate your body and soul. The tub should be large, with lots of relaxing whirlpool jets. Have a storage basket handy with your favorite bath soaps and lots of candles nearby.

A shower is the next best thing. Hopefully you'll have room for a tub as well as a separate stand-up shower; and especially for shower lovers, it's worth spending the extra money on a nice one. Similar to the tub, the shower should be large, the bigger the better, all the way up to the large couple-size versions. Ditch the old shower curtains, as the new models have glass walls and either no doors or glass doors, allowing the light to spill through. Choose from a veritable buffet of shower heads ranging from multiple heads, pulsating wall jets and large overhead rain heads.

Digital shower controls are also available that include waterproof speakers for that morning wake-up experience.

Cabinetry can be a combination of the old and the new. Furniture style cabinetry is all the rage with dark wood, ornate handles and stone or granite counter tops. However, the modern sleek contemporary cabinets are also popular.

Sink styles are reverting back to the old bowl style sink; where the basin appears to be placed on top of the cabinet. They come in a wide variety of finishes, including stone, porcelain and clear textured glass. Copper as an accent is also being widely used. Also, popular are square or rectangular basins and drop sinks.

For faucets, try the wall mounted variety, they have the advantage of being adjusted to various heights and provide attractive accents to a bowl sink. Crystal handles are very popular as well as chrome.

Go for the natural look. Try using a stone countertop or slate tiles for a spa-like, grotto effect.

The heat is on! Add heat to your bathroom with heated floors, towel racks and even fireplaces. All are widely available, with a variety of different styles to choose from. Heated floors are even popular in warmer climates; no one likes walking on a cold marble floor in the middle of the night.

Accessories complete the ensemble. Although wall colors should be neutral and calming, add splashes of color with accent pieces such as vases filled with branches, bamboo, an attractive piece of art, or a thin row of mosaic tile in contrasting shade. Place hooks near the shower and tub for that thick bathrobe you'll have hung up.

For all the comforts of home, add a mini fridge and an espresso maker to your home spa. Use open shelves for storage, and line with large wicker baskets filled with spa amenities. Fold luxurious, fluffy towels and stack them on the shelves.

Now call Sven for a personal massage; sit back and relax and enjoy your new bathroom!

If you are a Sarasota real estate investor the above article with also help you add thousands to the potential resale price of your property. If you are a buyer in Sarasota, you can search the Sarasota MLS to find your perfect home that someone has already made "Spa ready" for you.

Building With ICF's - The New Concrete House

Insulated concrete forms (ICF's) are changing the face of home building and construction. It used to be that you had limited options if you were building a new house. Conventional wood frame wall construction dominated the home building market. All of the building trades almost reached a point where they didn't know how to do anything but wood frame walls when it came to building a new house.

You could get a house with all brick walls if you wanted one but even that became little more than a masonry facade over a wood frame construction core. The need for high wall insulation for heating and cooling made it impractical to have an all brick house without insulation so the all brick house ended up evolving into a wood frame building with a brick veneer or facade.

All concrete houses were simply ugly 40 years ago. The building trades didn't really have many cost effective options for finishing off the outside of a concrete wall so it ended up bare or painted. The look became popular with office and government buildings but it was terrible for homes. And of course the problem with insulation was just as bad with concrete walls as it was with brick walls.

All of that has now changed with the invention of ICF's. The concept is really very simple. An ICF combines a conventional reinforced concrete wall with modern rigid foam insulation and does so in a way that is labor and material efficient and cost effective. Most ICF's today are made up of 3 basic parts. The first part is the inner layer of rigid foam insulation. Each piece is usually 2 to 3 inches thick, 30 to 40 inches long and 12 to 16 inches high. You cut and interlock as many pieces as you need to form the inside of the wall. The second part is the outer layer of foam. Usually it is identical to the inner layer of foam but many companies now have provision on the outside for attaching vinyl or wood siding or some other outside house finish. The third part to the system are wire or plastic connectors that connect the outer foam to the inner foam with a 4 to 12 inch gap in between for pouring the reinforced concrete wall. So when the wall is done you end up with a sandwich of 3 layers. Rigid foam insulation, then reinforced concrete wall and then another layer of rigid foam insulation. Because of the connectors the foam becomes a permanent part of the wall and building.

With old-fashioned concrete walls you had to construct a form to hold the concrete in place while it cured and then remove the form after the concrete was hard. A lot of work was involved and you ended up with a wall that was strong but had almost no insulation value. But with ICF's the foam does four things all at once. It acts as the form for the concrete, insulates the wall, forms a vapor barrier for the wall and also acts as an excellent surface for attaching inside and outside final finishes. It goes in easy and you don't remove it when the concrete is cured. You can use ICF's from the footings of a building all the way up to the roof. You end up with a building wall that is superior in almost every way. Much stronger walls, magnificent sound barrier and thermal mass advantages, easier to heat and cool and no wood to rot and grow Mold are all powerful advantages of ICF construction. Because the outside siding options are the same with either ICF's or conventional wood frame construction your home will fit into the neighborhood perfectly. From the outside the only thing that would look different is the walls are thicker compared to a wood frame building.

Michael Russell Your Independent Building guide.

Shower Pan Liners

How to install shower pan liners is the critical skill for building a trouble-free shower. You do have several options for installing a shower pan. Read on to learn the basics of shower liner installation and some of the different options for building a long-lasting shower.

The Traditional Way

If you want a ceramic shower, the traditional way is still the most common way to build a shower pan. The traditional way is masonry construction. A masonry base is built and the ceramic tile is set in place over the masonry base. This method requires some skill and even art. But if you understand the basics, a handy person can install a shower that works right on the first try.

Over a sold sub-floor you build two layers of mortar and then set the tile over the top layer. The drain is a special drain with two layers of drain holes. The first mortar layer is poured and sloped to the bottom drain holes. After that first layer dries, a waterproof vinyl sheet is installed on top of the first layer. This sheet is the real key to waterproofing the floor. The sheet is run up the shower walls and glued to the shower drain base. Over the waterproof membrane goes the top mortar layer. The tile is installed over this layer and grouted in place.

The vinyl membrane is necessary because ceramic tile and grout are not waterproof. The grout especially soaks up water and doesn't stop water at all.

One big plus of traditional construction is that any size or custom layout for your shower is possible.

Fiberglass or Acrylic Liners

Your local building supply store stocks shower liners ready to install. These pans are easy to install and can be used with matching walls or with tile walls. Choose fiberglass or acrylic materials for different looks and quality. The advantage of these shower floors is ease of installation and ease of cleaning. But custom sizes are much more expensive and may not be available in the layout you need. Fiberglass shower floors also are easy to scratch and damage and do wear over time. Ceramic tile cannot be installed over standard fiberglass or acrylic shower pans.

Tile Ready Shower Pans

If you want a traditional looking ceramic tile shower without the construction of the traditional shower pan, choose one of the tile ready shower systems. And these are systems. Most include wall and ceiling component liners as well as floor liners. Most tile ready shower pans include a vinyl pan with a built in drain. The pans are built over a masonry base or over foam support.

The advantage of these systems is the ease of installing. The skill level is less than the traditional construction. Plus installation is faster since no waiting is required between layers. The downside is cost. The kit often costs as much as a completed traditional installation. Manufacturers of tile ready systems are Tile Redi, Schluter and Wedi. Check your area for installers.

Puzzled about how to build a shower pan liner? Need more information? Visit our site for shower pan tips.

We invite you to visit http://www.installingceramictile.net for answers to your ceramic shower questions.

Al Bullington enjoys using and maintaining ceramic tile showers.

Build-It-Yourself Companies

The Build-It-Yourself industry, or Owner Builders as some call their self, is growing in popularity as potential new home buyers look to save money building their dream home. Many people love the thought of saving thousands of dollars by not hiring a Builder. However, there are a few secrets the Build-It-Yourself companies would rather you not know.

As a seasoned real estate professional, I've set through several of these courses just to see what these companies are pushing. I deal with Contractors on a regular basis so I have some insight on how the industry works

Here are just a few things the Build-It-Yourself companies either don't tell you or are not completely open and honest about.

• You get the same discounts as a Builder. This is one of the biggest marketinEC4g gimmicks Owner Builder companies use and it's just not true, at least not with the better Builders. You see, Builders have a network of sub-contractors and vendors they use on a regular basis. These subcontractors and vendors give them discounts if they continue to use their services. There is no way a sub-contractor is going to give you the same discount as a Builder who has been using his services for 5 years! Besides, do you really know if you're getting a discount? The truth is you're a one time customer and the Builder put their kids through school and food on the table month after month. Don't let the Build It Yourself crowd fool you.
• Builders Overcharge for Everything. Not true in most circumstances. Most Builders have a mark up in the 20% range. The better Custom builders have their tried and true stable of vendors and sub-contractors. Getting these top notch subcontractors to work for you will be nearly impossible because they do not know you plus the Custom Builder who uses them keeps them busy. You should always question the subs that these owner builder companies recommend.
• Our list of Sub-Contractors and Vendors are Pre-Screened. Well, maybe...or maybe not. Most of the time, "screened" means if they have the ability to pay the Build It Yourself company to get on their list. If you don't pay, you fail the "screening" process. I've been on several of these list and the only screening was the length of contract I was willing to sign with them.
• You control the building process yourself, not the Builder. To some extent yes, but more than likely the answer is "only as much as the subs want you to be." What they don't tell you is that if you have a problem with a sub not showing up or doing less than ideal work, you've got to deal with it. A quality Builder has the pull to get things done where you don't. It all goes back to the Builder choosing quality subs and those subs wanting to keep the Builder happy to they'll continue to use their services.

Before going the Build-It-Yourself route, make sure you know how the game is played. You may think that you'll save money by doing this. The truth is that you'll probably come out near what you would have paid a Builder or you may even pay more due to having poor sub-contractors and over runs. Just watch one of the many shows on HDTV and see how many of those people actually save money by building their homes. I run into home owners all the time who thought they would save thousands by "Doing It Theirself", few, very few, say they would ever do it again!

Tony Travis is a real estate hobbyist. Tony has been around the real estate industry for many years. Tony is the webmaster at Real Estate 101. Tony has sold real estate, bought real estate as investments and consulted on commercial real estate transactions. Real Estate 101 gives timely advice on all things real estate related. Drop by and say "Hi" to Tony at Real Estate 101.